Meet our team: Q&A with Paul Horng

This month, meet Fixed Income Manager Paul Horng, a Texas Longhorns-loving father of two daughters who enjoys podcasts and helping clients understand how movements in interest rates impact their portfolios.

Q: Will you please briefly describe your job?A: As the taxable fixed income manager, I am both chief cook and bottle washer for corporate bonds. In addition to closely following movements in interest rates, I am focused on purchasing bonds of high quality businesses that generate strong free cash flow and are committed to a disciplined use of debt. I also serve as a member of the Multi-Strategy team.

Q: What’s your favorite thing about your position and/or about working at Badgley Phelps? A: I enjoy watching global events unfold and their real-time impact on the financial markets, yet my favorite thing is the breath of the work. As both a CFA® Charterholder and a CFP® professional, I find the ability to work with colleagues and clients on a variety of areas rewarding. The range of work spans from meeting with clients to discuss their portfolios, to teach-ins on stock concentration to conversations on interest rates and durability of competitive advantages. This ensures that no two days are alike.

Q: What do you like to do when you’re not at the office? A: My wife and I have two vivacious daughters, ages three and six. Time out of work is primarily spent with them. Raising children involves both teaching and learning, and I enjoy both of those processes. While they are still very much in the early stages, my hope is that they will ultimately become the accomplishment I am most proud of. I also enjoy cooking and attending Orangetheory workouts.

Q: What’s the last book you read? A: Robert Iger’s The Ride of a Lifetime was the last book I read. While it is enlightening to read a biography of Disney’s CEO, I particularly appreciate his insider’s view of how the company navigated a difficult transition period in the early 2000s.

His perspective on Disney’s strategy amid a rapidly changing media landscape highlighted the importance of Disney’s commitment to creating high-quality content but also the flexible mindset required to willingly disrupt a highly profitable business to ensure the future prosperity of Disney.

Lastly, the book also serves as a reminder that there is more besides the numbers. As a financial analyst, I am prone to trying to boil everything down to numbers, yet ultimately, business of all shapes and sizes are about people—and treating people with decency and respect goes a long way.

Q: What, in your opinion, is the greatest game in history? A: As a University of Texas alumnus and a native Houstonian, the greatest game in history must be the 2006 Rose Bowl where Texas Longhorns defeated the USC Trojans for the BCS National Championship.

Q: What’s your favorite app? A: My favorite app is Overcast. It’s a podcast player that allows you to increase the speed of the podcast. Since hearing is your fastest sense, this allows you to take full advantage of it without degrading your comprehension. Why listen to something at 1.0x speed when you can listen to it at 2.0x?